Use of Media Technology and Self-Discipline

The biggest achievement

In our daily interactions (sometimes fights) with the nature, we developed many and complex tools, in order to survive and grow. These tools brought some main things/improvements in our life: comfort, efficiency and productivity. Due to technology we have comfortable homes, comfortable cars and more and more gadgets that make our life a pleasant journey on the earth. Due to technology we became the most efficient and productive living beings on the earth.

The biggest challenge

Technology gives us many useful tools, but they aren’t good or bad in it selves, we may use them for good purposes or for bad ones. They are just useful for one or another kind of purposes. Technology is a tool and we decide how to use it. Sometimes we use it properly, but sometimes we use it at our loss.

Ecology is the first concern when it comes to talk about technology. I talk here about two dimensions of ecology: outer ecology and inner ecology.

It is well known that technology brought us not only comfort, efficiency and productivity, but also a lot of environmental problems.

My concern here isn’t for the outer environment, but for the inner one. A properly use of technological tools enhance and develop our inner world. But a misuse of these tools may lead to severe damages for our biological and psychological wellness.

Let’s take a case – young people and use of media technology. Many studies and reports show that more and more adolescents have sleep problems due to misuse (overuse) of media technology (TV, computers, cell phones, etc.). And the chances to have such problems increase if you have these media technologies in your bedroom.

Tip: Don’t let media technologies rule your life, use it with moderation and be aware of technology addiction (TV addiction, computer addiction, etc.). Technology gives us efficiency & productivity, but at the same time overuse of media technologies may ruin our health, cheerfulness & joviality, and most probably our relationships.

Why we need Self-Discipline?

I think that we human beings, among all living beings, are the most vulnerable with regards to balance & moderation. Mostly, we are the beings of extremes. In almost all our activities we tend to go to extremes. Each of these activities can be placed on a scale with three main levels (two extremes and a middle point):

Don’t doing it – Doing it with moderation & balance – Overdoing it

Some activities are more suitable for extremes. For example – smocking – it is the best for us if we fall in the first extreme “doesn’t doing it”.

For the most of our activities the best level is “doing it with moderation & balance”. Use of media technologies fall in this category.

Hints:

Analyze your level of using media technologies (are you doing this with moderation & balance or at extremes?);